Valmiki Ramayana 2.13.4: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 13, Shloka 4
अयोध्याकाण्डे त्रयोदशः सर्गः | Kaikeyi Presses the Boons; Dasaratha’s Lament and Collapse
Setting: Ayodhyā palace (Kaikeyī’s apartments/inner chamber)
एवमुक्तस्तु कैकेय्या राजा दशरथस्तदा ।
प्रत्युवाच ततः क्रुद्धो मुहूर्तं विह्वलन्निव ॥४॥
evam uktas tu kaikeyyā rājā daśarathas tadā |
pratyuvāca tataḥ kruddho muhūrtaṃ vihvalann iva ||4||
കൈകേയി ഇങ്ങനെ പറഞ്ഞപ്പോൾ, രാജാവ് ദശരഥൻ അപ്പോൾ ക്രോധത്തോടെ, ഒരു നിമിഷം വിറങ്ങലിച്ചവനെന്നപോലെ അസ്ഥിരനായി, മറുപടി പറഞ്ഞു.
Sandhi Notes
- एवमुक्तस्तु = एवम् + उक्तः + तु
- दशरथस्तदा = दशरथः + तदा (visarga sandhi: ḥ + t → s t)
Thus addressed by Kaikeyi, king Dasaratha flew into a temper for a while, and then as if in a state of delirium, replied:
The teaching
Even the powerful are vulnerable to inner upheaval; dharmic action requires steadiness, which can be shattered by attachment and anger.
Duties in tension
- Kingly restraint and measured speech
- Personal grief and paternal attachment
- Obligation to honor pledged boons
- Ethical theme
- Emotional regulation as prerequisite for righteous governance
For your practice
Practice of kṣamā (forbearance) and mindfulness before speech; observe how krodha destabilizes truth and duty.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Raudra (fury), with Karuna (compassion)
- Mood
- Bewildered, seething, unsteady
Themes
- Dharma
- Satya
- Itihasa
- Ethics
- Emotional conflict
When mind (manas) is shaken by rāga-dveṣa, discernment (viveka) is eclipsed; the ‘king’ within loses sovereignty.
Kaṭha Upaniṣad chariot metaphor (buddhi as charioteer): here the reins slacken as emotion overwhelms governance of the senses/mind.
- Kaikeyi and Dasharatha
- Queen’s provocation; husband-king reacting in anger and shock (hostile)
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.13 (continuation: Daśaratha’s harsh reply and moral anguish); Rāmacaritamānasa Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Daśaratha’s agitation upon Kaikeyī’s demand (thematic parallel)
Dharmaśāstra trope: anger as enemy of judgment (general)
Earlier Ayodhyākāṇḍa descriptions of Daśaratha’s affection for Rāma, heightening his destabilization here
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Narrative
Slower tempo with a break at "muhūrtaṃ" to convey faltering
FAQs
The verse shows dharma under strain: even a righteous king can be shaken when forced to choose between vow-truth and paternal duty.
After Kaikeyī’s pointed reminder about truth and vows, Daśaratha reacts with anger and disorientation and begins to respond.
Human realism within dharma: a virtuous person may momentarily falter emotionally while still being bound to righteousness.
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